Role reversal — football player Coby Fleener interviews sports reporter Peter King

Football reporter Peter King's sports writing career began when, in sixth grade, he started penning accounts of sports games in his neighborhood. (Photo courtesy of NBCSports.com)

When sportswriter Peter King wanted to speak with then New York Giants Coach Bill Parcells outside of his regularly scheduled press conferences, Parcells brushed him off.

“I go to work real early, and I haven’t got much time after 6:30 or 7 o’clock in the morning,” Parcells said, “but if you want to come before that, I’m more than willing to try to help you.”

The next morning, King showed up at Parcells’ parking space at 5:45 a.m.

“He was shocked,” King said, “but he gave me 45 minutes.”

From that moment, Parcells realized that King was serious about covering the Giants, and he began to call him “Relentless.” The nickname stuck.

More than a quarter of a century later, in an interview with HBO’s Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel, Parcells said of King, “He wanted the story, but he would not compromise everything personally to get it… I found him to be a very trustworthy person.” Continue Reading >>